The girl emerged from the bathroom, clearly surprised to find Arielle standing right in front of the door.
Having mild social anxiety, her face reddened with embarrassment instantly.
“I… You…” she stuttered.
Sensing that she was having trouble speaking, Arielle started, “I’m waiting for you. Were you crying
because you got picked to perform on stage?”
The girl nodded silently. The motion caused her tears to leak out, startling even herself. She then rubbed
her palms hurriedly across her face. “I’m sorry…” she apologized awkwardly.
“There’s nothing to be sorry about.” Arielle’s voice was noticeably softer. “Do you have any talents? If
you’re too embarrassed to sing or dance, you could play an instrument.”
The girl shook her head. “I don’t know how to play any… but I can draw and write calligraphies.”
“Drawing and calligraphy…” Arielle repeated softly. All of a sudden, her eyes lit up. “How about drawing
something on stage?”
“I can’t… My mind goes blank whenever there’s a lot of people staring at me,” the girl admitted.
“In that case…” Arielle shrugged her shoulders. “I’ll perform on behalf of you.”
The surprise offer rendered the girl speechless for a few seconds. Then, she stared at Arielle in disbelief
as she confirmed once more, “Will you?
Arielle nodded. “Yes, I’m not bluffing you here. But, if you’d like, we could always perform together.”
“Together?” The girl considered her proposal seriously. “Never mind. I think it’s best I don’t… I’ll only hold
you back.”
“Just listen to me for a second…” Arielle proceeded to convince her.
That little prep talk managed to convince the girl as the latter nodded her head enthusiastically. “Okay,
let’s do it together! And, as repayment for your help, I’ll take charge of cleaning our room in the future.
I’m really good at it!” she proclaimed proudly.
Arielle laughed. “I can tell. I’ll let you handle this week’s cleaning. We’ll take turns afterward.”
“All right!” The girl’s eyes lit up. “I’ve always thought it would be hard to converse with a pretty lady such
as yourself. But…” she trailed off.
“But? Looks aren’t everything you know. Even a pretty lady farts and shit like everyone else. Besides,
you’re pretty adorable yourself.”
Being complimented for the first time, the girl’s face reddened, making her look much like a ripe apple.
Seeing that made Arielle find her even more adorable. “Oh, right. We haven’t introduced ourselves yet.
What’s your name?”
“Trisha Hughes.”
“Even your name’s cute. Can I call you Trish?”
Trisha nodded shyly. “Yes…”
“So that settles it. Just inform Donovan we’ll be performing together.”
“Got it!”
“I’ll go shower now. In the meantime, wipe away those tears. I hate seeing cute girls like you cry.”
“I won’t cry anymore! I promise.”
Only then did Arielle feel reassured enough to head inside the bathroom.
By the time she finished, it was past lights out. Since the dormitory lights automatically turned off at ten, it
was dark out there. Just as Arielle was about to feel her way to bed, Trisha turned on the flashlight from
her phone, lighting up the path to her bed.
“Thank you.” Arielle smiled gratefully.
The night went on.
Arielle went under her sheets, switching on her phone.
There were still no signs of any incoming calls or messages, except for two advertisement messages
that she deleted.
She could not help feeling a void in her chest.
Amidst the pin-drop silence of the night, Arielle found her thoughts running wild. She recalled the first
time she had met Vinson, the first time they made ravioli together… All those memories stirred
something within her, making her feel too restless to sleep. She got out of bed and lit up the therapeutic
candles Andrea had gifted her.
The candles proved to be effective, as she felt her eyelids getting heavier by the minute. It was
specifically designed for Arielle and would not affect Trisha the slightest bit.
Just as she was about to fall asleep, her phone rang.
62fb1bb41dcb31934bd49bda